tarnished my past joys. Since then I have felt myself humiliated

in you,--you whom I thought the most honorable of men, as you are



the most loving, the most tender. I must indeed have deep

confidence in your heart, so young and pure, to make you this



avowal which costs me much. Ah! my dear love, how is it that you,

knowing your father had unjustly deprived others of their



property, that YOU can keep it?

"'And you told me of this criminal act in a room filled with the



mute witnesses of our love; and you are a gentleman, and you think

yourself noble, and I am yours! I try to find excuses for you; I



do find them in your youth and thoughtlessness. I know there is

still something of the child about you. Perhaps you have never



thought seriously of what fortune and integrity are. Oh! how your

laugh wounded me. Reflect on that ruined family, always in



distress; poor young girls who have reason to curse you daily; an

old father saying to himself each night: "We might not now be



starving if that man's father had been an honest man--"'"

"Good heavens!" cried Monsieur de Bourbonne, interrupting his nephew,



"surely you have not been such a fool as to tell that woman about your

father's affair with the Bourgneufs? Women know more about wasting a



fortune than making one."

"They know about integrity. But let me read on, uncle."



"'Octave, no power on earth has authority to change the principles

of honor. Look into your conscience and ask it by what name you



are to call the action by which you hold your property.'"

The nephew looked at the uncle, who lowered his head.



"'I will not tell you all the thoughts that assail me; they can be

reduced to one,--this is it: I cannot respect the man who,



knowingly, is smirched for a sum of money, whatever the amount may

be; five francs stolen at play or five times a hundred thousand



gained by a legal trick are equallydishonoring. I will tell you

all. I feel myself degraded by the very love which has hitherto



been all my joy. There rises in my soul a voice which my

tenderness cannot stifle. Ah! I have wept to feel that I have more



conscience than love. Were you to commit a crime I would hide you

in my bosom from human justice, but my devotion could go no



farther. Love, to a woman, means boundless confidence, united to a

need of reverencing, of esteeming, the being to whom she belongs.



I have never conceived of love otherwise than as a fire in which

all noble feelings are purified still more,--a fire which develops



them.

"'I have but one thing else to say: come to me poor, and my love



shall be redoubled. If not, renounce it. Should I see you no more,

I shall know what it means.



"'But I do not wish, understand me, that you should make

restitution because I urge it. Consult your own conscience. An act



of justice such as that ought not to be a sacrifice made to love.

I am your wife and not your mistress, and it is less a question of



pleasing me than of inspiring in my soul a true respect.

"'If I am mistaken, if you have ill-explained your father's



action, if, in short, you still think your right to the property

equitable (oh! how I long to persuade myself that you are



blameless), consider and decide by listening to the voice of your

conscience; act wholly and solely from yourself. A man who loves a



woman sincerely, as you love me, respects the sanctity of her

trust in him too deeply to dishonor himself.



"'I blame myself now for what I have written; a word might have

sufficed, and I have preached to you! Scold me; I wish to be



scolded,--but not much, only a little. Dear, between us two the

power is yours--you alone should perceive your own faults.'"



"Well, uncle?" said Octave, whose eyes were full of tears.

"There's more in the letter; finish it."



"Oh, the rest is only to be read by a lover," answered Octave,

smiling.



"Yes, right, my boy," said the old man, gently. "I have had many

affairs in my day, but I beg you to believe that I too have loved, 'et



ego in Arcardia.' But I don't understand yet why you give lessons in

mathematics."

• unable [ʌn´eibəl] a.不能的；无能为力的 (初中英语单词)


• monsieur [mə´sjə:] n.先生 (初中英语单词)


• province [´prɔvins] n.省；领域；范围 (初中英语单词)


• nephew [´nevju:, ´nɛfju] n.侄子；外甥 (初中英语单词)


• forgive [fə´giv] vt.原谅，谅解，宽恕 (初中英语单词)


• gesture [´dʒestʃə] n.手势 v.打手势 (初中英语单词)


• polite [pə´lait] a.有礼貌的；温和的 (初中英语单词)


• old-fashioned [´əuld´feʃənd] a.老式的；过时的 (初中英语单词)


• sufficiently [sə´fiʃəntli] ad.充分地，足够地 (初中英语单词)


• character [´kæriktə] n.特性；性质；人物；字 (初中英语单词)


• immense [i´mens] a.广大的，无限的 (初中英语单词)


• wealth [welθ] n.财富，财产 (初中英语单词)


• worthy [´wə:ði] a.有价值的；值得的 (初中英语单词)


• philosophy [fi´lɔsəfi] n.哲学；人生观 (初中英语单词)


• slightly [´slaitli] ad.轻微地；细长的 (初中英语单词)


• emotion [i´məuʃən] n.感情；情绪；激动 (初中英语单词)


• pardon [´pɑ:dən] n.&vt.原谅；饶恕；赦免 (初中英语单词)


• venture [´ventʃə] n.投机 v.冒险；敢于 (初中英语单词)


• reward [ri´wɔ:d] n.&v.报答；报酬；奖赏 (初中英语单词)


• sentence [´sentəns] n.判决 vt.宣判；处刑 (初中英语单词)


• opening [´əupəniŋ] n.开放；开端 a.开始的 (初中英语单词)


• beheld [bi´held] behold的过去式(分词) (初中英语单词)


• properly [´prɔpəli] ad.适当地；严格地 (初中英语单词)


• affection [ə´fekʃən] n.友爱；慈爱 (初中英语单词)


• estate [i´steit] n.财产；庄园；等级 (初中英语单词)


• confess [kən´fes] vt.供认；坦白；承认 (初中英语单词)


• charming [´tʃɑ:miŋ] a.可爱的；极好的 (初中英语单词)


• useless [´ju:sləs] a.无用的，无价值的 (初中英语单词)


• intimate [´intimit] a.亲密的 n.知己 (初中英语单词)


• beloved [bi´lʌvd] a.为….所爱的 n.爱人 (初中英语单词)


• deceive [di´si:v] vt.欺骗，欺诈 (初中英语单词)


• gratitude [´grætitju:d] n.感激，感谢 (初中英语单词)


• criminal [´kriminəl] a.犯罪的 n.罪犯 (初中英语单词)


• seriously [´siəriəsli] ad.严肃；严重，重大 (初中英语单词)


• reflect [ri´flekt] v.反射；反响；表达 (初中英语单词)


• conscience [´kɔnʃəns] n.良心；道德心 (初中英语单词)


• whatever [wɔt´evə] pron.&a.无论什么 (初中英语单词)


• amount [ə´maunt] n.总数；数量 v.合计 (初中英语单词)


• stolen [´stəulən] steal 的过去分词 (初中英语单词)


• equally [´i:kwəli] ad.相等地；平等地 (初中英语单词)


• commit [kə´mit] vt.犯(罪)；把…判处 (初中英语单词)


• devotion [di´vəuʃən] n.献身；忠诚；热爱 (初中英语单词)


• otherwise [´ʌðəwaiz] ad.另外 conj.否则 (初中英语单词)


• consult [kən´sʌlt] v.商量；磋商；请教 (初中英语单词)


• mistress [´mistris] n.女主人；情妇；女能手 (初中英语单词)


• persuade [pə´sweid] v.(被)说服；使相信 (初中英语单词)


• wholly [´həul-li] ad.完全，十足；统统 (初中英语单词)


• perceive [pə´si:v] vt.察觉；看出；领悟 (初中英语单词)


• gently [´dʒentli] ad.温和地；静静地 (初中英语单词)


• delicacy [´delikəsi] n.精美；娇弱，微妙 (高中英语单词)


• pronounced [prə´naunst] a.发出音的；显著的 (高中英语单词)


• agitation [,ædʒi´teiʃən] n.鼓动；摇动；焦虑 (高中英语单词)


• rustic [´rʌstik] a.田野的；质朴的 (高中英语单词)


• ridiculous [ri´dikjuləs] a.荒谬的；可笑的 (高中英语单词)


• profound [prə´faund] a.深奥的；渊博的 (高中英语单词)


• contempt [kən´tempt] n.轻蔑；受辱；不顾 (高中英语单词)


• charity [´tʃæriti] n.施舍；慈悲；博爱 (高中英语单词)


• pavement [´peivmənt] n.路面；铺筑材料 (高中英语单词)


• courtyard [´kɔ:tjɑ:d] n.院子，庭院 (高中英语单词)


• pretence [pri´tens] n.假装；托词；无理要求 (高中英语单词)


• sanction [´sæŋkʃən] n.&vt.批准；认可 (高中英语单词)


• mistaken [mis´teikən] mistake的过去分词 (高中英语单词)


• esteem [i´sti:m] n.尊重 vt.认为；感到 (高中英语单词)


• elegant [´eligənt] a.文雅的；优美的 (高中英语单词)


• repeated [ri´pi:tid] a.反复的；重复的 (高中英语单词)


• sadness [´sædnis] n.悲哀；悲痛；凄惨 (高中英语单词)


• misfortune [mis´fɔ:tʃən] n.不幸；灾祸 (高中英语单词)


• loving [´lʌviŋ] a.爱的，有爱情的 (高中英语单词)


• saying [´seiŋ, ´sei-iŋ] n.言语；言论；格言 (高中英语单词)


• assail [ə´seil] vt.猛击；困扰 (高中英语单词)


• stifle [´staifəl] vt.(使)窒息，闷死 (高中英语单词)


• solely [´səulli] ad.唯一；单独；完全 (高中英语单词)


• sincerely [sin´siəli] ad.真诚地；诚恳地 (高中英语单词)


• planter [´plɑ:ntə] n.种植者；殖民者；花盆 (英语四级单词)


• chaste [tʃeist] a.贞洁的；高雅的 (英语四级单词)


• modesty [´mɔdisti] n.谨慎；端庄；羞怯 (英语四级单词)


• garret [´gærit] n.阁楼，顶楼 (英语四级单词)


• sincerity [sin´seriti] n.真诚；诚意 (英语四级单词)


• imperative [im´perətiv] a.紧急的 n.命令式 (英语四级单词)


• totally [´təutəli] ad.统统，完全 (英语四级单词)


• blessed [´blesid] a.享福的；神圣的 (英语四级单词)


• integrity [in´tegriti] n.完整；完善；正直 (英语四级单词)


• wasting [´weistiŋ] a.&n.浪费(的) (英语四级单词)


• boundless [´baundlis] a.无边无际的 (英语四级单词)


• renounce [ri´nauns] v.拒绝 n.放弃权力 (英语四级单词)


• dishonor [dis´ɔnə] n.耻辱 vt.凌辱 (英语四级单词)


• sagacity [sə´gæsəti] n.精明；敏锐；有远见 (英语六级单词)


• hundredth [´hʌndridθ] num.第一百(个) (英语六级单词)


• adoration [,ædə´reiʃən] n.崇拜，敬爱 (英语六级单词)


• taking [´teikiŋ] a.迷人的 n.捕获物 (英语六级单词)


• sanctity [´sæŋktiti] n.神圣；圣洁；尊严 (英语六级单词)